Gizzard splitter and washer



Nov. 12, 1957 N. B. CRANE ETAL 2,812,540

' GIZZARD SPLITTER AND WASHER 4 Filed Oct. 30, 1956 4 Sheets-Sheet 1mush/Tops. NORTON 5. CPA/YE NELSON H. u/v/v 2, 957 N. B. CRANE ETAL 3 5'//v VENTORS.

Nopro/v' B. CRANE NELSON H. Du/v/v ,4 TTORNEX Nov. 12, 1957 N. B. CRANEETAL 2,812,540

' GIZZARD SPLITTER AND WASHER Filed Oct. 30, 1956 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVE/YTOAS.

Yo/emu B. CPA/YE vase/v H. DUNN ATTORNEY.

Nov. 12, 1957 N. B. CRANE ETAL ,8

GIZZARD SPLITTER AND WASHER Fildoct} so, 1956 v 4 Sheets-Sheet 4INVENTORS. NORTON B. C'Rfl/YE NELSON H. DUN/V Arrow/Ex r 2,812,540GIZZARD SPLITTER AND WASHER Norton B. Crane, Goldenrod, and Nelson H.Dunn, Tampa, Fla.

Application October 30, 1956, Serial No. 619,226

9 Claims. (Cl. 17--11) This invention relates to a gizzard splitter andwasher, and more particularly to a device in which the gizzards arecarried by a rotating wheel and washed by internal flushing.

The gizzards of poultry and other fowl are considered to be a desirableand edible portion of the bird. However, it is a well known fact thatthey contain a certain amount of waste material which must be removedbefore the gizzards can be prepared for sale. In so preparing themmanually, it is customary to slit the gizzard lengthwise, opening itthroughout most of its width, and then wash the waste material out frominside of the gizzard. It will be apparent that the manual processing ofgizzards in this manner is a slow tedious task, and that one individualwill not be able to process a very large number of the gizzards at anyone time.

Devices have been proposed which split and wash a gizzard mechanically,but most of them have caused a high percentage of rejections, eitherbecause the gizzards by reason of varying size have been damaged inhandling the machine, or the machine has failed to completely wash thegizzard and therefore resulted in a great deal of reprocessing.

It is therefore a primary object of our invention to provide a device inwhich uniform pressure will be applied to all gizzards processed by themachine, regardless of their size or shape.

It it still another object of our invention to provide a washingmechanism which may be inserted inside of the gizzard after it is splitto cause the water to be flushed outwardly therefrom.

Another object of our invention is to provide a plurality of washingstations, said washing stations adapted to move into the path ofmovement of the gizzard only when such gizzards are in position in themachine.

It is still another object of our invention to provide a plurality ofimpinging members, said members being adapted to adjust themselvesautomatically longitudinally with reference to the gizzards themselves.

Other and further features and objects of the invention will be moreapparent to those skilled in the art upon a consideration of theaccompanying drawings and following specifications, wherein is discloseda single exemplary embodiment of the invention, with the understanding,however, that such change may be made therein as fall within the scopeof the appended claims, without departing from the spirit of theinvention.

In said drawings:

Figure 1 is a three-quarter view in perspective of a gizzard splitterconstructed according to our invention.

Figure 2 is an enlarged front elevation of the mechanism of the gizzardsplitter and washer, portions thereof being cut away to more fullydisclose the structure.

Figure 3 is an enlarged side elevation, in cross section, of the deviceshown in Figure 2. v

Figure 4 is a rear view of the drive mechanism taken at line 44 ofFigure 3.

2,812,540 Patented Nov. 12, 1957 ice Figure 5 is an enlarged view incross section of the impinging members, they being shown in fullyretracted position.

Figure 6 is another view in cross section of the im pinging membersshowing them in a fully extended position.

Figure 7 is a top view of a pair of holding blocks in cross section,showing the impinging members in varying degrees of extension inrelation to a gizzard held therebetween and Figure 8 is an enlarged viewpartially in cross section of the washing mechanism shown in Figures 1and 2, the side wall of the casing being broken away.

Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to Figure 2; theprimary conveying mechanism includes a large circular plate 11 which hasa plurality of stations 12, 13 and 14 about its outer circumference.This circular conveyor or wheel 11 is rotated by stages in a clockwisedirection, the gizzards to be processed being held in the individualstations about the circumference of the wheel. In the embodiment shown,there are 12 such stations. In operation, the gizzard is placed on theconveyor wheel at the topin station 12. It then moves clockwise with thewheel to a point where it comes in contact with a circular knife 15,then through the washing stations 16 and 17, thence upwardly to thechute 18 where the gizzard is ejected from the machine.

These various steps will now be described in detail, together with thenature of the stations themselves.

Referring to Figure 3; it will be noted that the conveyor plate 11carries a rim 19 which is spaced outwardly at some distance from themain plate. The holding stations, such as 12, comprise two L shapedblocks 20 and 21. The impinging members such as 22, 23, 24, 25, 26 and'27 are carried in these L-shaped blocks. This is true with eachsucceeding station in the blocks on both the main wheel 11 and the rim19. These blocks are so positioned that the impinging members aredirected inwardly towards each other and it will be apparent that it isbetween these impinging members that the gizzard is held.

The nature of these impinging members is of the utmost importance. Theblocks are provided with a longitudinal bore 28, Figure 5, and the pins,such as 22, are

cylindrical in -shape and adapted to slide longitudinally within themating bored opening. On the inner ends of these impinging members is adownwardly extending peg 29 which is received in a longitudinal slot 39within the block. The impinging members are biased outwardly by a springmember 31. It will be at once apparent that these peg members can beutilized to move the impinging members back and forth within the bore ofthe block, and it will be apparent in further description that these pegmembers are used to cause the stations to be opened and closed and alsoto regulate the movement of the washing mechanism at the bottom of theconveyor wheel,

The structure of the point of the impinging members is another importantfeature of our invention. It will be noted that a shoulder surface isprovided on the outer ends of the impinging members and that a smallneedlelike point 33 extends further outwardly from this shoulderportion. Referring to Figure 7 in which a gizzard is shown in positionbetween a plurality of such impinging members, it will beseen thattheshoulder prevents the impinging member from penetrating the gizzard toany greater depth than the length of the needle-like point, and that inthe embodiment shown,wherein six impinging members are positioned ineach block, that their depth of thrust varies in accordance to the shapeand size of the gizzard itself, that the centermost pins extend onlyslightly outwardly from the blocks, whereas those on either end of theblocks are extended to'their full lengths.

In order to place the gizzard in position between the two blocks, as atstation 12, it is necessary that the impinging members be fullyretracted. This is also the case at station 34, at which point thegizzard is ejected from the machine by the chute 18.

This desired movement of the impinging members to a retracted point canbe achieved by use of the peg 29. To secure this desired movement, wehave provided a rail member 35 which extends for a portion of the arc ofthis conveyor between stations 34 and 12. As the wheel moves throughthis are, the pins are biased outwardly by the rail 35 and the impingingmembers held in the retracted position. It is apparent, of course, thatwith the impinging members in this position, the gizzard held at 34 willdrop down between the main wheel and the rim into the chute 18 and outof the machine.

At the top of the conveyor at station 12, the rail ceases and theimpinging members are then permitted to slide inwardly. It is at thispoint that the operator inserts the gizzard, holding it only until theimpinging members move into proper engagement.

Itis desirable to move the wheel in a series of steps, rather than haveit operate continuously. For that reason, we have provided alever-actuated switch 80 having a long tongue-like portion 36 whichextends between the main wheel and the rim and about the arc of thewheel from one station to the next, beginning at station 12. When theoperator places the gizzard in position between the two blocks, he willat the same time be pushing the gizzard against this tongue-like leverwhich will cause the switch 80 to close and, in the embodiment shown,operate the solenoid clutch member 37 which is connected to the motor38. The solenoid acts on a pin 39 between the two faces 40 and 41 of theclutch member.

As soon as the wheel has moved from station 12 to station 13 and thegizzard passes off of the end of the cone, the switch is again openedand the wheel stops. It will not be placed in action again until anothergizzard is inserted in the top opening 42. Of course it is sometimesdesirable to revolve the wheel, although no gizzard may be in theindividual station. For that reason, we have provided an over-ridingswitch 43 which will actuate the clutch in the same manner as switch 80.

Referring now to the splitting operation itself; it will be noted thatthe rotary blade which is powered by its own individual motor 15a is sopositioned that it will not completely sever one side of the gizzardfrom the other. It will still leave a slight hinge portion 45 in thesplit gizzard.

The repeated insertion of gizzards at station 12 will cause all of theother stations to advance one position with each insertion. This willbring the stations past the rotary knife blade and into position abovethe first washing mechanism. This washing mechanism is another importantfeature of our invention. It is here that the gizzards are internallywashed, this being accomplished by mechanism which will be furtherdescribed in detail, adapted to move the water nozzle 46 upwardlybetween the severed portions of the gizzard and into the interior of thegizzard. This washing nozzle is rotated during the time it is stillinserted, thereby causing water to be directed about the circumferenceof the interior of the gizzard, thoroughly flushing it on the inside,the water flowing outwardly and carrying with it all waste material. Asecond washing or rinsing nozzle 47 is also provided to operate in thesame manner as 46.

The operation of the washing mechanism is such that the nozzles are notmoved upwardly unless a gizzard is actually being held by the pinmembers. As has been previously described, the presence of a gizzardcauses the pins to be held outwardly whereby they come into contact witha lever 63, as shown in Figure 3. This lever in turn is adapted toactuate the solenoid such as 48.

A similar lever arrangement on the second washing station actuates thesecond solenoid 49. These solenoids in turn move lateraly, actuatingshafts 48a and 49a which are slideably attached to rocker arms such as50 and as shown in Figure 8.

The two nozzles 46 and 47 are carried by vertically splined housings 51and 52. These housings are adapted to slide up and down in relation tothe non-rotating water inlets 53 and 54, a seal such as 54:: beingprovided to prevent leakage of water. The outer ends of the lateralrods, such as 48a, are attached to the upper end of the splined housing.It will be apparent that the lateral movement of this rod will cause therocker arm 50 to be turned, in turn elevating the outer end of the rodand consequently the splined housing to which it is attached, thuscausing the nozzle 46 to move upwardly into the gizzard.

To impart rotary motion to these two nozzles and their respectivehousings, I have provided a motor 55 which powers the pulley 56 throughmeans of a chain 56a, which in turn turns a smaller gear 561;. Thesecond chain 57 is operatively connected to two sprockets 58 and 59which are mounted by means of the aforementioned spline on the housings51 and 52.

From the foregoing description, it will be apparent that it would not bedesirable to have these nozzles move upwardly into the path of rotationof the stations unless there was actually a gizzard in position in thestation. Otherwise the nozzles might come into contact with theimpinging members and cause a stoppage. Since the washing mechanism isoperated by a separate motor, a separate switch 62 is provided tocontrol this motor. This switch is the lever-operated type switch, thelever being shown in this embodiment at 63. It is L-shaped and has onits outer end a roller 64 which is adapted to engage the pegs 29.Obviously if these impinging members are fully extended because of theabsence of any gizzard, the roller will contact the pegs at theirinnermost positions, thereby permitting the switch to remain in anopened condition; that if a gizzard is present in the station and theimpinging members and their accompanying pegs are in a retractedposition, the wheel will contact the peg in its outward point and closethe switch, causing the motor to actuate the washing mechanism.

The entire structure, that is, the revolving wheel, the drive motors,and the like, are all housed in a rectangular cabinet or casing 65, theconveyor being carried on bearings such as 66 and 67 which are in turncarried by a cross member such as 68 and 69.

As previously stated, the drive mechanism for this device is adapted tomove the stations from position to position in intermittent steps,permitting the gizzards to remain at one station long enough for thenecessary operational actions, as for example the washing station. Tosecure this type movement, we have provided an intermittent drivecommonly referred to as the Geneva type mechanical drive.

The clutch member 40, which is engaged to the motor 38 through theoperation of solenoid 37, is in the form of a belt pulley and is adaptedto drive a second larger pulley 40a. This pulley is mounted on a shaft70 which is held in position by brackets 70a and 79b. Mounted on thisshaft is the drive wheel 71 which in turn drives a larger wheel 72. Itis this latter mechanism which is the Geneva type drive. The largerwheel has a plurality of slots 73, 74 and 75 about its outercircumference. These slots are adapted to receive the pin 76 on thedrive wheel 71, this pin and drive wheel resembling a cam in that as thepin 76 engages one of the slots the larger wheel is turned in aclockwise direction for a predetermined distance. As the pin 76 is movedout of the slot, a groove 77 in the face of the drive wheel 71 engagestwo smaller pins, such as 78 and 79, causing the wheel 72 to be held ina stationary position. This mechanism is more fully shown in Figure 7.

It will be seen, from the foregoing description, that we have provided adevice in which gizzards are held gently in each of the individualstations, passed over a rotating knife, and then successively washed andrinsed by the introduction of water internally, then ejected from themachine at a predetermined point.

Although we have described a specific embodiment of our invention, it isapparent that modifications thereof may be made by those skilled in theart. Such modifications may be made without departing from the spiritand scope of our invention as set forth in the appended claims.

We claim as our invention:

1. In a gizzard washer, a shaft, a wheel rotatably mounted on said shaftsaid Wheel comprising a disc having a rim mounted thereon and spacedapart therefrom, a plurality of opposed gizzard holding memberspositioned on the outer periphery of said disc and said rim, opposedimpinging members slidably mounted in said holding members, and cammeans operatively connected to said shaft for imparting an intermittentrotary movement to said wheel.

2. In a gizzard washer, a shaft, a wheel rotatably mounted on said shaftsaid Wheel comprising a disc having a rim mounted thereon and spacedapart therefrom, a plurality of opposed gizzard holding memberspositioned on the outer periphery of said disc and said rim, opposedimpinging members slidably mounted in said holding members, and meansoperatively connected to said shaft for imparting an intermittent rotarymovement to said wheel, including a knife member adjacent said rotarywheel.

3. A device as set forth in claim 2, and further including washing meansmounted adjacent and operatively connected to said rotary wheel.

4. In a device of the type described, a shaft, a circular wheelrotatably mounted on said shaft said wheel having a plurality of gizzardholding stations on the outer periphery thereof, said stations includinga plurality of slidably mounted impinging members therein, saidimpinging members being adapted to hold a gizzard, splitting meanspositioned adjacent the outer circumference of said wheel, and aplurality of washing means mounted adjacent said wheel, said washingmeans including nozzles adapted to be moved upwardly into the path ofrotation of said wheel and powered means operatively connected to saidshaft for rotating said wheel.

5. In a device of the type described, a frame, a wheel rotatably mountedin said frame, power means operatively connected to said wheel adaptedto impart intermittent motion thereto the outer periphery of said wheelincluding a plurality of gizzard holding stations comprising opposedblock members having impinging members slidably mounted therein, andguide means on said frame adapted to move said impinging memberslongitudinally to permit the impinging of a gizzard thereon, and a knifemember on said frame adjacent said wheel positioned to slit saidgizzards, and :a washing station positioned on said frame adjacent saidwheel and adapted to wash said gizzards.

6. In a gizzard holding member for use with a gizzard washer of the typedescribed, a plurality of opposed L- shaped blocks, a plurality oflongitudinally disposed impinging members positioned in said blocks inopposed relation, a plurality of downwardly depending, actuating pegsmounted on said impinging members, guide members mounted on said gizzardwashing device and adapted to engage said downwardly depending rods tocause said rods and said impinging members to be moved longitudinallyoutwardly from each other, and switch means mounted on said gizzardwasher adapted to engage said downwardly depending rod members, saidswitch means being adapted to actuate said washer.

' 7. In a device of the type described, a frame, a wheel rotatablymounted in said frame said wheel having a plurality of gizzard holdingstations thereon, a washing station mounted on said frame adjacent saidwheel and having a rotatably mounted nozzle therein, lever meansoperatively connected to said wheel and said holding stations forcausing said nozzle to be extended substantially inwardly radially ofsaid wheel to intersect the path of movement of said gizzard holdingstations when a gizzard is held therein.

8. In a gizzard splitter and washer, a frame, a wheel rotatably mountedin said frame, power means operatively connected to said wheel to causethe rotation thereof, a plurality of gizzard holding stations positionedon the outer periphery of said wheel, said stations including aplurality of opposed horizontally mounted impinging members havingengaging pegs thereon, guide rail means positioned about thecircumference of said wheel and adapted to engage said pegs toselectively cause outward movement of said impinging members to permitinsertion of a gizzard therebetween, spring means adjacent each of saidimpinging members adapted to bias said members inwardly to permitgizzards to be held lightly between said opposed impinging members uponthe release thereof from guide means, knife means positioned in saidframe adjacent said wheel and adapted to intersect said gizzard duringthe circumferential movement thereof, and washing means positionedadjacent said wheel and in the path of movement of said gizzard holdingstations.

9. In a gizzard splitter and washer, a frame, a wheel rotatably mountedin said frame, power means operatively connected to said wheel to causethe rotation thereof, a plurality of gizzard holding stations positionedon the outer periphery of said wheel, a plurality of impinging memberspositioned about the circumference of said wheel, said impinging membersbeing positioned in opposed pairs adapted for horizontal outwardmovement in relation to each other, spring means adapted to bias theimpinging members inwardly toward each other, peg means on saidimpinging members, guide means positioned about a portion of thecircumference of said wheel, and fixedly positioned in the path ofmovement of said peg portions of said impinging members, whereby saidimpinging members will beheld outwardly from the plane of said wheel topermit the insertion of gizzards therebetween, knife means positionedadjacent said wheel about the circumference thereof at a distance fromsaid guide means, and washing means mounted adjacent said wheel on saidframe at a point further removed about the circumference thereof inrelation to said aforementioned guide member, a second guide meansfurther circumferentially beyond said washing means and further adaptedto engage said previously mentioned pegs to cause the opening of saidimpinging members, whereby gizzards may be inserted between saidimpinging members adjacent said first mentioned guide means, thencemoved circumferentially adjacent said knife, thence circumferentiallyadjacent said washing means, thence circumferentially adjacent saidsecond guide means, whereby said gizzard will be released in relation tosaid impinging members.

Streich et a1 Aug. 10, 1954 Kristmann et al Mar. 27, 1956

